
Directing
Alexander Mackendrick
Born — Died
1912-09-08 — 1993-12-22
Place of birth
Boston, Massachusetts, USA
Known for
Directing
Credits
23 titles
Alexander Mackendrick (September 8, 1912 – December 22, 1993) was an American-born Scottish film director and screenwriter. He directed nine feature films between 1949 and 1967, before retiring from filmmaking to become an influential professor at the California Institute of the Arts. Born to Scottish immigrant parents in Boston, he was raised in Glasgow from the age of 6. He began making television commercials before moving into post-production editing and directing films, most notably for Ealing Studios where his films include Whisky Galore! (1949), The Man in the White Suit (1951) - which earned him an Oscar nomination for Best Screenplay, The Maggie (1954), and The Ladykillers (1955). …
Known for
7.6New York City newspaper writer J.J. Hunsecker holds considerable sway over public opinion with his Broadway column, but one thing that he can't control is his younger sister, Susan, who is in a relationship with aspiring jazz guitarist Steve Dallas. Hunsecker strongly disapproves of the romance and recruits publicist Sidney Falco to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method.
Sweet Smell of Success
1957
7.3Five oddball criminals planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.
The Ladykillers
1955
5.2Carlo Cofield vacations to Southern California, where he quickly becomes immersed in the easy-going local culture, getting entangled in two beachside romances.
Don't Make Waves
1967
6.8Scottish islanders try to plunder 50,000 cases of whisky from a stranded ship.
Whisky Galore!
1949
7.1London, the early 1950s. Born deaf, Mandy is mute for most of her childhood. As she reaches school age her family itself is in danger of breaking up. Christine, Mandy's mother, has heard of a residential school for the oral education of the deaf.
Mandy
1952
6.6Sophie Dorothea is a young woman forced into a loveless marriage with Prince George Louis of Hanover. George Louis is later crowned King George I of England. Despairing of ever experiencing true love, the depressed queen finds life at court no solace. Sophie then falls for a dashing Swedish soldier of fortune, Count Konigsmark.
Saraband for Dead Lovers
1948
Film credits
1980s · 2 titles
NRThis 1986 documentary features interviews with director Alexander Mackendrick, actor Burt Lancaster, producer James Hill, and others.
Mackendrick: The Man Who Walked Away
1986
5.0Documentary about the British film studio. First appeared on the BBC television programme Omnibus.
Made In Ealing: The Story of Ealing Studios
1986
Behind the camera
7.6New York City newspaper writer J.J. Hunsecker holds considerable sway over public opinion with his Broadway column, but one thing that he can't control is his younger sister, Susan, who is in a relationship with aspiring jazz guitarist Steve Dallas. Hunsecker strongly disapproves of the romance and recruits publicist Sidney Falco to find a way to split the couple, no matter how ruthless the method.
Sweet Smell of Success
1957
7.3Five oddball criminals planning a bank robbery rent rooms on a cul-de-sac from an octogenarian widow under the pretext that they are classical musicians.
The Ladykillers
1955
5.2Carlo Cofield vacations to Southern California, where he quickly becomes immersed in the easy-going local culture, getting entangled in two beachside romances.
Don't Make Waves
1967
6.8Scottish islanders try to plunder 50,000 cases of whisky from a stranded ship.
Whisky Galore!
1949
7.1London, the early 1950s. Born deaf, Mandy is mute for most of her childhood. As she reaches school age her family itself is in danger of breaking up. Christine, Mandy's mother, has heard of a residential school for the oral education of the deaf.
Mandy
1952
6.6Sophie Dorothea is a young woman forced into a loveless marriage with Prince George Louis of Hanover. George Louis is later crowned King George I of England. Despairing of ever experiencing true love, the depressed queen finds life at court no solace. Sophie then falls for a dashing Swedish soldier of fortune, Count Konigsmark.
Saraband for Dead Lovers
1948
6.3In 1870, a Jamaican colonial family sends its children to Britain for proper schooling, but their ship is taken over by pirates, who become fond of the kids.
A High Wind in Jamaica
1965
6.9The unassuming, nebbishy inventor Sidney Stratton creates a miraculous fabric that will never be dirty or worn out. Clearly he can make a fortune selling clothes made of the material, but may cause a crisis in the process. After all, once someone buys one of his suits they won't ever have to fix them or buy another one, and the clothing industry will collapse overnight. Nevertheless, Sidney is determined to put his invention on the market, forcing the clothing factory bigwigs to resort to more desperate measures...
The Man in the White Suit
1951
6.9The unassuming, nebbishy inventor Sidney Stratton creates a miraculous fabric that will never be dirty or worn out. Clearly he can make a fortune selling clothes made of the material, but may cause a crisis in the process. After all, once someone buys one of his suits they won't ever have to fix them or buy another one, and the clothing industry will collapse overnight. Nevertheless, Sidney is determined to put his invention on the market, forcing the clothing factory bigwigs to resort to more desperate measures...
The Man in the White Suit
1951
6.3After he is orphaned by an air raid on Port Said during the Suez Crisis, a young boy attempts to go by himself from the Suez Canal to Durban in South Africa where his nearest relative, Aunt Jane, lives. On the way he meets a variety of different people who help or hinder his journey - including an ageing diamond smuggler.
Sammy Going South
1963
6.1Episodic tale of four factory girls and their various romances at the local dance hall in Chiswick, London. Unusual at the time, the film tells its story from a feminine perspective. Today, it is mainly recognised for its post-war London atmosphere, with bomb sites, trolleybuses and rationing.
Dance Hall
1950
6.3The poor, elderly—and the wily, when it comes to parting those who can afford it from their money—Scottish skipper of a broken-down old 'puffer' boat tricks an American tycoon into paying him to transport his personal cargo. When the tycoon learns of the trick, he attempts to track down the boat and remove his possessions.
The 'Maggie'
1954
8.0Mackendrick on Film is an educational project constructed around the film teachings of legendary pedagogue Alexander Mackendrick. Taking as its starting point Mackendrick's body of written work contained in his book On Film-making: An introduction to the craft of the director, Mackendrick on Film is a structured 'illustrated lecture' that features never-before-seen footage of Mackendrick at work in the classrooms and studios of the California Institute of the Arts, new interviews with former students and colleagues, extracts from archived interviews with Mackendrick about his career as a teacher of cinema, rare photos, and a selection of his student handouts, storyboards and sketches.
Mackendrick on Film
2004
A plea to the public to sort out metal objects from their waste paper.
Contraries
1943
7.0Animated cinema advertisement produced for Horlick's by George Pal.
Love on the Range
1939
Ever seen a snake with a moustache? The Middle East was as much an ideological as a physical battleground in the Second World War. In the midst of the conflict Halas & Batchelor were commissioned by the British Government to make four cartoons featuring a young boy Abu and his mule. They were intended to demonstrate in simple visual terms that Britain was a stout friend and the Axis powers a pernicious evil.
Abu and the Poisoned Well
1943
No synopsis available yet.
Abu's Dungeon
1943
NRAnimated cinema advertisement produced for Horlick's by George Pal.
South Sea Sweethearts
1938


